Samuel Sherer Elder (ca. 1827/28 – April 6, 1885) was a career

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

artillery officer and a battery commander in the famed

U.S. Horse Artillery Brigade The Horse Artillery Brigade of the Army of the Potomac was a brigade of various artillery battery, batteries of horse artillery during the American Civil War. Made up almost entirely of individual, Company (military unit), company-strength batter ...

during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

Early years

Born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Elder enlisted in the United States Army in June 1853 and was assigned to Battery C, 2nd U.S. Artillery. During his five-year enlistment, he was promoted from the rank of

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...

through

first sergeant First sergeant is typically a senior non-commissioned officer rank, used in many countries. Singapore First sergeant is a Specialist (Singapore), specialist in the Singapore Armed Forces. First sergeants are the most senior of the junior spe ...

. His enlistment ended in 1858 and he returned to civilian life. As a civilian, Elder trained as a lawyer.

Career

Upon the outbreak of the

, Elder received a commission as second lieutenant on March 23, 1861, assigned to the 1st U.S. Artillery. Promoted to

first lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a se ...

in the 4th U.S. Artillery, May 14, 1861, Elder commanded Battery E, 4th U.S. Artillery and served in the Eastern Theater with the

Army of the Potomac The Army of the Potomac was the primary field army of the Union army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was created in July 1861 shortly after the First Battle of Bull Run and was disbanded in June 1865 following the Battle of ...

. He was cited for gallantry and awarded a promotion to brevet

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

for actions at

Antietam The Battle of Antietam ( ), also called the Battle of Sharpsburg, particularly in the Southern United States, took place during the American Civil War on September 17, 1862, between Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virgin ...

, September 17, 1862. By 1863, Elder's battery was assigned to the

, where it served for most of the remainder of the war. He earned a permanent promotion to captain on August 1, 1863. Detached briefly in February 1864, Elder was cited for gallantry at the

Battle of Olustee The Battle of Olustee or Battle of Ocean Pond, was fought in Baker County, Florida, on February 20, 1864, during the American Civil War. It was the largest battle fought in Florida during the war. Union General Truman Seymour had landed troo ...

in Florida, and was awarded the brevet promotion to

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

. Returning to the Horse Artillery, he was again cited for actions at Drewry’s Bluff, May 5, 1864, and was brevetted lieutenant colonel. He remained with the Army after the war, and was promoted to major in the 2nd U.S. Artillery, June 30, 1882.

Death

Elder died on April 6, 1885, while posted to Fortress Monroe, Virginia, where he had been an instructor of law at the Fortress Monroe Artillery School. His listed age at time of death was 58 years old. He was buried in his hometown of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Early years

Career

Death

Sources

Further reading